CAIRO — A Libyan military spokesman said Monday that three foreigners were among a number of militants killed in U.S. airstrikes in eastern Libya, but said it is too early to determine if the target, an Algerian al-Qaida-linked leader, was among them.
The U.S military said it launched weekend airstrikes in Libya targeting Mokhtar Belmokhtar, a militant who once belonged to al-Qaida who is charged with leading a 2103 attack on a gas plant in Algeria that killed at least 35 hostages, including three Americans. Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said it was believed the strike was successful but “post-strike assessments” were still underway to determine whether the target was killed.
“Our initial assessment is that it was a successful strike but we’re not prepared to confirm that because we haven’t finalized our assessment,” he said. Libya’s internationally recognized government, based in the country’s east, said the strike was coordinated with the United States.
The U.S. filed terrorism charges in 2013 against Belmokhtar in connection with the Algeria attack. Officials have said they believe he remained a threat to U.S. and Western interests. Belmokhtar had just split off from al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb to start his own franchise.
The charges filed against Belmokhtar by federal law enforcement officials in Manhattan included conspiring to support al-Qaida and use of a weapon of mass destruction. Additional charges of conspiring to take hostages and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence carry the death penalty.
At the time, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a release that Belmokhtar “unleashed a reign of terror years ago, in furtherance of his self-proclaimed goal of waging bloody jihad against the West.”
Authorities also offered a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Belmokhtar.
The airstrike comes as al-Qaida militants in eastern Libya continue to battle with members of the Islamic State, as the warring groups fight over power and resources.
And the U.S. has been involved before in the fight against extremists in Libya.
U.S. special forces in 2013 went into Tripoli and seized Abu Anas al-Libi, whisking him out of the country. Al-Libi was accused by the U.S. of involvement in the 1998 bombings of two American embassies in Africa. Al-Libi died January this year in a US hospital from a long-standing medical condition.
Last week, a senior al-Qaida leader was killed by masked gunman, prompting the group to declare holy war on the local Islamic State affiliate. Clashes between the two groups in the eastern coastal city of Darna killed 11 people.
Militants have taken advantage of the chaos, flowing fighters into the country’s vast ungoverned spaces. And as the Islamic State group has grown in power, fueled by successes in Iraq and Syria, some al-Qaida fighters have switched loyalties.
In its statement Sunday, the Libyan government said that the operation “is a piece of the international support that it has long requested to fight terrorism that represents a dangerous threat to the regional and international situation.” It added that the government would like more help fighting terrorism, including the Islamic State group, which controls Sirte and is moving west toward Misrata and south toward the Jufra military base.
